another awesome halloween
Wednesday, October 31st, 2012
Recipe: miso butter roast chicken
Before it got dark, before the kids would start coming around to trick or treat, I took Kaweah for a quick walk up a local trail. There were clouds stretched across the sky in wide horizontal strokes, but enough space for the sun to light them up from below the horizon. I watched them turn yellow, then orange. “Come on, pup! Let’s get to the top of the hill!” She climbed as fast as her little old legs would take her and when we got to the clearing at the top, she got her treat.
waiting for a scooby snack
…and i got my treat
We walked back as night began to envelop the neighborhood. I gave Kaweah a stick to carry because she trots faster that way. Jeremy met us half-way down the street as he had just gotten home and had set Halloween candy out. I love fall and I love Halloween because it’s a no-pressure, festive, and fun holiday. I like it because it’s about the kid in all of us. I also like Halloween because it was Halloween night twenty years ago when Jeremy first held my hand. Technically, it was November 1, but it was a continuation of Halloween. The early years were, as my dearest Barbara would say, young love. It has since evolved into the best and strongest relationship of my life. I feel fortunate, because at 21 (or 19) you are pretty much guaranteed to make a lot of bad and dumb decisions, but I think I lucked out big time back in 1992. I still feel that way today. Happy twenty years of awesome, Jeremy!
Today’s recipe is a special one, because it comes from a dear friend of mine. For our girls’ weekend we spent an evening cooking up a feast. Ellen made her world-famous Caesar salad, I contributed the gremolata smasher potatoes, and Kat made her miso butter roast chicken. Phenomenal meal all around, but the moment I tasted that chicken, the first coherent words out of my mouth were, “Kat, do you mind if I blog this recipe?” It’s just too good to not share with everyone.
all you need: garlic, miso paste, butter, olive oil, mirin, and chicken
first, roast the garlic
golden, buttery, mellow roasted garlic
The only thing you need to do ahead of time is roast a bulb of garlic and let the butter come to room temperature. This chicken is relatively quick and easy to prepare, particularly if you roast parts rather than a whole chicken (but I give instructions for both in the recipe below). We were all fans of dark meat, so Ellen got chicken thighs. My favorite way to enjoy dark meat from a chicken is via the chicken quarter – the thigh and drumstick. Majorly fantastic in every way.
beat the miso into the butter
add the roasted garlic (and a dash of mirin)
a smooth miso butter
**Jump for more butter**
Recipe: cannellini bean, kale, and sausage stew
